Bottle closure



Filed Jan. 17, 1935 Twin liiiii I jg J5 15 l I I 22 M. 5 Q

INVENTOR k ATTORNEY,

Patented Oct. 29, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BOTTLE CLOSURE Application January 17, 1935, Serial No. 2,193

2 Claims. (Cl. 215-95) The invention relates to bottle closures, and more particularly to a re-seal closure embodying therein means whereby the removal of the closure cap is permitted only after the displacement of a sealing ring possessing frangible parts, the mutilation of which prevents the re-application of said ring to a container and the other parts of the closure.

In the packaging of various commodities, there is a growing tendency of producers to seal containers in a manner which will preclude access thereto without the destruction of some part of the closure, so that if a dishonest distributor of the merchandise should attempt to remove a part of the contents of and dilute the portion remaining in, the container, or to re-fill empty containers, the purchasing public will be apprized of the fact that the container has been tampered with. In this manner, the practice of diluting the contents of an original container, or of re-filling containers, is discouraged if not fully avoided.

Closures of the type to which the invention relates, generally designated tamper-proof closures, may be advantageously used only with certain classes of commodities, and the closure of the invention is particularly designed for use in the packaging of commodities, the nature of which involves the partial removal of the container contents from time to time. With this condition of use, what is known as a re-seal closure is employed.

With the above conditions in mind, I have provided a tamper-proof, re-seal closure embodying therein an ordinary closure cap having a metal shell provided with an outwardly formed rim or bead about the lower edge of the skirt of the shell,

this cap having associated therewith a sealing ring engaging the bead of the metal shell and being spun under a bead upon the neck of the container. This ring is so constructed that it can be engaged with a container only by means of suitable tools, but can be readily removed from the container by hand, and will be mutilated either when thus removing it from the container, or when attempting to restore the ring to the container after it has once been removed therefrom.

The destructibility of the sealing ring is essential to the successful use of a container closure embodying the invention, and the construction of this ring must be such as to permit it to be readily removed by hand with or without the aid of a simple utensil, such as a knife.

The desired characteristics are imparted to the closure in part by the material of which the sealing ring is made, and in part by the form of this ring.

The purpose of the sealing ring in the closure of the invention is not to prevent the removal of 5 the screwcap from a container, but to prevent the re-sealing of the container with the use of the same parts which were originally incorporated therein.

The invention consists primarily in a bottle closure embodying therein a skirted shell having an outwardly directed rim about the bottom of the skirt thereof, a sealing gasket within said shell, the skirt of said shell having means adapted to engage complementary means about the neck of a bottle, whereby said shell, by turning movement, may be applied to or removed from said bottle, and a sealing ring comprising a band of frangible material having an inturned flange at the top thereof engageable with said outwardly directed rim of said skirt, and of a width to permit the opposite edge thereof to be spun under a bead about the neck of the bottle, said band, adjacent one end thereof, having a narrow, highly frangible tongue formed from the material of the band, and an integral tab end adjacent the other end thereof having a slot near the juncture of said tab end with the band, said locking tongue being passed through said slot and foldable against said band to prevent expansion of the ring, the material of said band, at the juncture of the tab with the wider portion of the band, being weakened to increase the frangibility of the metal at this point and in such other novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawing,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the neck of a container having a closure embodying the invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a section of the lower part of the closure and a part 0! the container upon the line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the closure;

Fig. 4 is a condensed view of the sealing ring before application to the closure cap; and

Fig. '5 is an end view of the band shown in Fig. 4.

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the accompanying drawing, the neck of a bottle is shown at Il-O, this neck being provided with a bead ll so positioned as to co-operate with a sealing ring of a closure, and with exterior screw threads [2 like those commonly used upon containers adapted to be sealed by ordinary metal screw caps.

The closure proper comprises an ordinary screw cap having a skirt I3 provided with the usual screw threads 14, and an outwardly turned roll or bead l5 at the bottom of the skirt. The top of this shell is provided with an enlarged head l6 provided with knurling, in the usual manner, for affording gripping areas to facilitate the mounting and removal of the cap on or from the bottle or other container. Within the metal shell iii the usual sealing gasket or liner is shown at H.

The parts of the closure heretofore referred to are of the usual and well known construction and are those commonly found in re-seal closures.

Encircling the skirt [3 is a sealing ring l8 formed from a fairly wide band which is of hardened strip aluminum so as to impart to the means locking the band upon the skirt and bottle neck, a fairly high measure of 'frangibility. About one edgeof this band I8 is an inturned flange l9 adapted to seat upon and engage the outturned roll or bead i5 above the bottom of the skirt l3. Theband is of a length considerably greater than the greatest circumference of the skirt l3, and one end of the bandis reduced to form a long tab 20 projecting beyond the flange 19 at that end of the band. This projecting tab, in the assembled closure, overlies the opposite end of the V band for a purpose to be more fully referred to hereinafter.

The reduced tab end 20 has a narrow slot 2| therein positioned near the adjacent full width 7 part of the band l8, and the material of the band,

at the juncture of the tongue 20 with the main body l8 thereof may be, and preferably is, weakened as by scoring, as shown at 22 so as to avoid any material flexibility of the sealing ring at this point,

Adjacent the other end of the band I8, I form up from the material of the band, a narrow looking tongue 23 which, by reason of the dimensions thereof and the characteristics inherent to the material of the band, is highly frangible at the point of juncture with the band proper. This tongue 23 is of a width adapted to pass through the slot 2|, the width of said slot being greater than the thickness of the metal of the band so as to afford some latitude in adjusting the sealing band to the neck of a bottle. a i

The band I8 is of a width to afford sufflcient material to allow the lower edge 24 thereof, or the edge opposite the flange 19, to be spun under the bead Ii upon the neck of a bottle.

The metal of which the band is made is sufii- ...ciently hard and of sufiiciently thin gauge to permit the locking tongue 23 to be folded down upon the tab end 20 without likelihood of the crystallization of the metal to an extent to cause a fracture thereof along the line of the bend, but if it be attempted to bend this tongue 23 more than once, the metal, at the point of juncture of the tongue with the main body of the'band, will become highly crystallized and will be ruptured so as to prevent the connection of the two ends of the band.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 3 of the drawing, the tab end 20 overlying the opposite end of the band is not in close contact with the portion of the band which it over1ies,'so that it may be readily seized by the fingers and-lifted from the other portions of the band. By bending the end 20, this tonguemay be utilized tohold the tab end more snugly against the portion of the band which it overlies. This lifting of the tab raises the locking tongue 23 and will ordinarily break this tongue from the band, thus preventing the replacement of the sealing ring upon the con- 5 tainer closure. Incidentally, the lifting of the tab end 20 will cause crystallization of the ,material along the 1ine 22 of juncture of this tab with the flanged portion of the band, so that if it be attempted to restore this tongue to its former po- 10 sition, the tongue itself will break from the band. These features of frangibility of parts of the band interlocking with each other to secure the ends of the band after the strip of material has been bent to a substantially circular form, are 15 the essential characteristics of the closure of the invention since without these characteristics the i band might be readily removed and replaced, thus eliminating from the closure, its tamper-proof qualities. At the same time, the high frangibility 20 of these parts permits'the convenient removal of the band from the container and from the other portions of the closure.

7 While I have described the removal of the band by hand as being the ideal way of removing the 3 sealing ring, if a tool should be applied to the skirted'metal shell so as to forcibly turn same, the entire ring might be raised upwardly, but in so doing the ring would be spread to an extent to break the tongue 23 and thus so mutilate the 6? ring as to prevent its re-application to a closure.

In the manufacture of closures embodying the invention, the ring may be closed upon the skirt l3 and secured in this position by the bending of the locking tongue 23, and when so positioned, 5 will remain upon the metal shell since the flange [9 will prevent the escape of the band over the bead I5, and the knurled head IE will prevent the escape of the flange l9 over the top of the cap. When the sealing ring has once been expanded 05': so as to permit its removal from the skirt I3, the cap proper may be used as an ordinary screw threaded closure in permitting access to the contents of, or in re-sealing, the container after the removal of a part of such contents.

By using a tab end 20 which is narrower than the rest of the band 18, double thickness of the band adjacent the spun portion thereof isavoided, although this is immaterial since the spinning of any portion of this tongue would not interfere with the lifting thereof in breaking the lock between the ends of the band in the manner described. j r

The closure of the invention is to be distinguished from a type of closure well known prior to 1 my invention, embodying therein a skirt or ring of ductilemetal which may be readily torn when it is desired to remove the closure from a container.

The ring embodied in the closure of my invention is a split ring, the ends of which are con- 0 nected by co-operating interlocking members, the material of the band of which this ring is formed being a fairly hard metal stock which may be flanged and spun only by means of machine tools and will maintain a permanent form. The hardness of the metal stock results in crystallization of .the metal when it is so formed even with a single bending operation, but the ring will still possess sufficient strength and rigidity to resist deformation, A second bending along the same lines might, even with the flange l9 and the spun lower edge, cause the cracking of the metal if not a complete rupture thereof.

The bending of the locking tongue 23 when closing the ring-during the assembling of the closure materially weakens this tongue at the bend, so that when a reverse bend is imparted to the tongue this weakened portion, due to crystallization of the metal, causes the breakage of the tongue from the band in almost every instance. In any event, the material is so weakened at the bend that it cannot be again used to lock the ends of the ring, without breaking the locking tongue from the band.

The construction of parts is such that the same sealing ring cannot be used more than once.

The purpose of the closure is not to prevent the removal of the screw cap, but to prevent such removal without so mutilating the closure as to show clearly that the cap has been removed.

I have referred to the use of aluminum in the band from which the ring is formed, but other hard metal strip material may be used so long as it possesses a degree of frangibility ensuring the breaking of the locking tongue or of the tab, if it be attempted to bend them first to remove and then to replace the sealing ring upon the container.

It is not my intention to limit the invention to the precise details of construction shown in the accompanying drawing, it being apparent that such may be varied without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent, is:--

1. A bottle closure embodying therein a skirted shell having an outwardly directed rim about the bottom of the skirt thereof, a sealing gasket within said shell, the skirt of said shell having means adapted to engage complementary means about the neck of a bottle, whereby said shell, by turning movement, may be applied to or removed from said bottle, and a sealing ring comprising a band. of frangible metal having an inturned flange at the top thereof engageable with said outwardly directed rim of said skirt, and of a width to permit the opposite edge thereof to be spun under a bead about the neck of the bottle, said band, adjacent one end thereof, having a narrow, highly frangible locking tongue formed from the material of the band, and an integral tab end 5 adjacent the other end thereof having a slot near the juncture of said tab end with the band, said locking tongue being passed through said slot and foldable against said tab to prevent expansion of the ring, the material of said band, at the juncture of the tab end with the wider portion of the band being weakened to increase the frangibility of the metal at this point.

2. A bottle closure embodying therein a skirted shell having an outwardly directed rim about the bottom of the skirt thereof, a sealing gasket within said shell, the skirt of said shell having means adapted to engage complementary means about the neck of a bottle, whereby said shell, by turning movement, may be applied to or removed from said bottle, and a sealing ring comprising a band of frangible metal having an inturned flange at the top thereof engageable with said outwardly directed rim of said skirt, and of a width to permit the opposite edge thereof to be spun under a bead about the neck of the bottle, said band, adjacent one end thereof, having a narrow, highly frangible locking tongue formed from the material of the band, and an integral tab end adjacent the other end thereof having a slot near the juncture of said tab end with the band, said locking tongue being passed through said slot and folded towards the free end of said tab end and against said tab to prevent expansion of the ring, and cause the lifting of said tab end to simultaneously lift said locking tongue and the material of said band, at the juncture of the tab end with the wider portion of the band being weakened to increase the frangibility of the metal at this point.

CHARLES H. RASMUSSEN. 

